Scouting
by Sora532
Summary: Set during the Twelfth cycle. Slight AU. Vaan and Terra volunteer to check out a mountain path but is that only thing that they discover?


**So I was listening to March on the Frontier from the Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Soundtrack and somehow came up with this crazy idea of a one-shot. I guess that was what people meant when they said music is a great inspiration. Oh yeah, this is set during the twelfth cycle and is somewhat AU.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Dissidia Final Fantasy or Duodecim but I do have a PSP and a copy of 012 if that makes any difference. **

"We're gonna need two people to scout the mountain path ahead," Laguna nodded at the path as he and his friends sat at the base of the ravine.

"So, is anyone up for it?" Yuna asked, looking around at the other two people in the affectionately dubbed 'dysfunctional family'.

"I'm game," Vaan offered, staring into the fire while raising his hand.

Laguna nodded and Yuna offered to go with him but Terra decided that she wanted to go instead, which led to a long…conversation of sorts. In short, Yuna and Terra both stormed off and began a shouting match of sorts.

Vaan shrugged and told them that he'd be waiting at the base of the mountain path. Several minutes later, Terra walked over, looking rather pleased with herself.

"C'mon, let's go!" said Vaan loudly as he and Terra started their trek up the mountain.

The walk was a quiet one as neither Vaan nor Terra had anything to say. They didn't mind the silence but they quickly caught sight of a large monster. It had blood-red skin, large horns, sharp teeth, and stood on two legs that made it look at least ten feet tall. Both of them noticed that it carried a large axe in its hand.

"What is that thing?" Vaan muttered, gripping his sword tightly. Terra remained silent.

Unfortunately, the monster heard the hushed conversation and ran at them. Terra dove to the left and Vaan to the right.

Terra conjured several fire spells and sent them flying at the monster, each one hitting the beast in quick succession. She then followed up with an Ultima, heavily damaging the beast.

Meanwhile, Vaan charged in, sword held aloft, a cataclysm spell at his fingertips. He stabbed his weapon into the beast's head, paralyzing it. Vaan charged up cataclysm and unleashed it, taking it out in one hit.

"Easy," Vaan grinned then scowled. "Damn, my weapon's all dirty."

"Never mind that," said Terra quietly as she knelt beside the dead beast. "What should we do with the beast?"

"Harvest it, we could definitely use the axe and we can use the rest of the body for food or something," Vaan shrugged, grabbing the beast's legs.

" I'll take the front guard," Terra suggested.

Vaan nodded as Terra walked forward. Vaan couldn't help but admire her appearance: Curly emerald hair tied in a ponytail, violet eyes, cream-colored skin, a red sleeveless shirt, flower colored tights, red ankle boots with golden tips, brown turtleneck, pale, flower-patterned cape and a pair of long, red gloves.

Meanwhile, Terra was up ahead, scouting for any potential threats. Finding none, Terra looked out the corner of her eye to watch Vaan drag the monster. She liked having him within her sight as much as possible because, she admitted to herself, she was both hopelessly in love with him and incredibly protective of the younger boy. She glanced back at him, appraising his appearance; he has tanned skin, blond hair, and gray eyes and wore a loose cropped open vest held together by a pendant over his chest, a red sash holding up his dark pants which are tucked into his steel boots. He also wore a matching pair of gauntlets on his hands.

Terra snapped out of her thoughts when she noticed that her comrade's pace had stopped.

"Are you hurt?" Terra asked worriedly, running over to make sure that her Vaan wasn't injured.

"No, I'll be fine," Vaan said with a smile as he hefted the dead monster more tightly on his shoulder. "It looks like there's gonna be a huge snowstorm up ahead," he added as an afterthought.

"Should we go ahead or head back to the others?" Terra asked.

"I'm gonna keep going, whatever you do is up to you," Vaan replied, marching off into the snowstorm.

Terra frowned as she watched Vaan slowly disappear into the snowstorm before realizing that she had lost him and quickly ran after the object over her affection.

She had to squint in order to see at all in the brutal snow storm and even then, her visibility was limited.

"I've gone and lost him," Terra muttered, pulling her cape closer to her shoulders in an effort to warm up.

She suddenly heard a roar and spun around to see a ferocious beast ready to slash at her. She panicked and tried to summon some of her magic but she knew that she wouldn't be able to cast the spell in time. She closed her eyes, waiting for the blow that will end her life.

Or it would have, if not for a certain gray eyed boy slashing the monster in the heart.

Terra slowly opened her eyes to see Vaan standing there, hand proffered. She blushed and took his hand.

"I got worried so I started looking for you," Vaan said as he pulled her to her feet. She noticed him wince as he pulled her up.

"Vaan, what's wrong," Terra asked, grasping his shoulder tightly.

"I just had a bad run in with some manikins while I was searching for some shelter. We can't just keep going in this crazy weather," Vaan replied, wincing as he guided the esper girl to the makeshift shelter.

As they traveled back, Terra noticed the slight limp in Vaan's walk and a large bruise forming on his head and insisted she carry him. Vaan protested but when Terra pulled her most serious face, she meant business so Vaan found himself guiding her from the support of her arm around his back.

"This should keep us safe," said Terra quietly, gently placing Vaan on the cave floor.

"It was a lucky find. Come on, sit down, I need to heal you," Vaan stated as he pulled her towards him by the hem of her cape and pulled her into his lap. Terra squeaked in protested as he pulled her closer to him but he paid her no mind.

Terra blushed crimson at the compromising position but ignored it. They were friends. She allowed Vaan's hands to rub her legs. She closed her eyes and smiled softly as she felt him place a bottle to her mouth. She obediently drank its contents, feeling her wounds heal themselves.

"Your turn," said Terra shyly as she reluctantly pulled herself out of Vaan's embrace and patted her lap, encouraging Vaan to lie down.

Vaan frowned but obediently laid his head in Terra's lap as she began healing the wounds to his head.

"You know, I think it's fairly safe to say that I'm probably one of the few people that you've opened up to," Vaan mused, keen on starting a conversation.

"You're one of the few people I trust," Terra replied simply as she finished healing the wounds to the boy's skull and shifted so she could continue the healing. "Thank you," she added as an afterthought.

"What for?" Vaan asked, confused.

Terra smiled lightly, closing her eyes at the same time. She played with his hair for a few seconds before crafting a sufficient response.

"You rescued me from Kefka. You gave me a taste of true freedom. Thank you, Vaan," Terra replied, pulling him closer to her chest. "You are my best friend," she whispered in his ear while thinking, _though I wish we were more_.

"Really," said Vaan skeptically. Terra nodded. _Should I do it now?_

Steeling her resolve, Terra pulled Vaan's face into hers and pressed her lips to his. Initially she could tell that he was confused by the action but he quickly responded by kissing her back. Terra felt her heart soar higher than sky, if that was possible, and joy erupted as she wrapped her arms around his neck and he pulled her in, arms at her waist. Her hands glided through his soft hair while his hands squeezed her tightly and a sudden jolt soared through her spine.

Terra gasped when she felt Vaan nip her lower lip, seeking entrance, which she happily gave as their tongues danced, each vying for dominance over the other, yet in perfect harmony.

They would have continued if the need for air hadn't been so desperate.

The pair pulled apart breathing heavily.

"Wow," Vaan gasped, panting. Terra blushed shyly as she took his hand in hers.

"Vaan, I've been meaning to tell you for a long time...but...I love you," she said shyly, head staring at the ground.

"Terra, I...I love you too," Vaan admitted.

Terra knew that Vaan loved her from the way he kissed her but hearing the words made her heart pound wildly, bursting with happiness that was beyond anyone's comprehension.

Suddenly, Vaan stood up. Terra eyed him worriedly as he peered outside the cave. Much to his relief, there was no one there. He walked back to her and said, "You should probably get some rest. No offense, but you look horrible. I'll stand watch."

Terra made to protest but his gentle yet firm grip on her shoulder made it difficult to resist and in the end, she gave in.

"Fine," she mumbled as she felt her eyelids grow heavy. "Just…wake me up when you get tired." With that, she fell asleep.

Of course, Vaan had no intentions of waking his comrade so he gathered some sticks that he had found and started a small fire.

He looked around and saw nothing. He shrugged, before unsheathing his sword and gripping it tightly in his hand while he stared out at the cave entrance. The snowstorm was still intense and they had no chance of moving…and then it hit him: the corpse! He should probably skin and gut it!

Stealing a knife from Terra's pocket, Vaan skinned the beast, cleaning off loose bits of stuff he didn't want to know about and tenderly put it on Terra's legs as a blanket.

* * *

><p>Vaan wasn't sure what he could do with the guts so he decided to leave it for later. He turned his attention to meat and freed the flesh from the bone, ignoring the flecks of blood coming off the body.<p>

Done gutting the corpse, Vaan let the meat cook while he peered outside the cave. He heard several bouts of laughter coming a familiar clown that we all know and probably hate.

Kefka caught sight of the sky-pirate to be and shot several spells at him. "You have something that belongs to me."

"Why don't you try and take it?" Vaan taunted, unsheathing his sword and holding it aloft.

Kefka smirked and fired several fire spells at the boy. Of course, Vaan dodged, sprinting over to the deranged clown and rushing him to the ground. Vaan followed up with a Cataclysm spell.

Kefka fired several Blizzaga spells. Vaan dodged blocked the initial icicle but when it shattered, the debris scattered around, hitting him repeatedly. Kefka seized his chance and fired off more spells.

Vaan slid out of the way just in time, stabbing Kefka in the stomach, causing the clown to scream in pain.

Kefka then vanished. Vaan looked around and saw that he wasn't in the cave or anywhere so he shrugged and headed back to the cave, relieved that the madman was gone and that Terra was safe.

* * *

><p>Terra stirred in her sleep when she felt a warm sensation nearby. She opened her eyes and saw Vaan roasting two pieces of meat. He also looked like he took heavy beating. <em>Did I lose control of my powers again? <em>She thought worriedly.

She stealthy walked over to him and poked him on the shoulder. She felt him jump and couldn't bite back the small giggle that came to her lips.

"Give me a break, Terra," said Vaan, recovering from the shock.

"I thought we agreed that you would wake me up when it was my turn for watch?" Terra asked, sitting down next to him. "And why are you hurt?"

"Kefka," Vaan replied simply. Terra growled, something completely out of character for her but Kefka makes Terra do all sorts of things..."And besides, I wasn't feelin' it," Vaan replied casually, handing her one of the pieces of meat but she didn't eat it.

"We're partners though, so you should have woken me up," Terra stated, frowning at him.

Vaan sighed, "You looked tired so I decided to let you rest a bit more." He put his hands behind his head and continued. "Besides, I wasn't tired. I couldn't just sit there!"

Terra sighed before taking a bite of the meat. It wasn't her first choice of food but then again, their choices were few and far in between. Vaan pulled Terra into his arms and the two sat there in a peaceful silence, Terra subtlely healing Vaan while relishing his touch. _Is this what love is all about? _Terra wondered. If it was, then she liked, no, loved the feeling.

"Hey! The snow stopped!" Vaan shouted, looking outside.

True to his word, the blizzard had stopped, leaving a heavy coat of snow behind. "Let's go!" he exclaimed.

"Vaan! Wait!" Terra shouted. Vaan spun around and she pulled him into another long passionate kiss. Unlike the last one, Vaan could feel the wanting…no, the need in the kiss and Vaan returned with equal fervor, telling the girl before him how much she mattered.

They would have continued if the need for air hadn't been so desperate.

The pair pulled apart breathing heavily.

"Wow," Vaan gasped, panting. Terra blushed shyly as she took his hand in hers.

"We should head back to the others," said Vaan, also blushing.

Terra looked disappointed but Vaan looked back at her, mischievous smirk on his face and said, "We'll continue this later." He then sprinted down the mountain path where Laguna and Yuna would be waiting for them.

Terra blushed slightly before running off after him.

**What did you think? I hope I portrayed Vaan and Terra alright. Truthfully, I didn't want to make them seem too introverted or too outgoing. (Unless it's Vaan; That'd be okay).**


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